Orana Mid-Western police has launched the '9pm routine' initiative, to help encourage residents to develop effective crime prevention habits before going to bed.

The latest data released by the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR) last month, revealed in the 12 months to March 2022, break and enters to dwellings in Dubbo was almost five times higher than the NSW average.

There were 561 incidents of break and enters in 2022, compared to just 368 the year before. That's almost 11 break and enters each week in the Dubbo region.

Motor vehicle thefts were also 3.6 times the NSW average with 252 incidents in Dubbo recorded.

District commander, Superintendent Danny Sullivan said the '9pm routine' campaign is designed to safeguard and strengthen the community to deter crime, improve personal safety and build community resilience.

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"What we've noticed is about 8 to 10 homes in our area that are getting broken into are actually being entered by unlocked doors or windows, and what we're noticing with that is cars are primarily being stolen with their own keys," he said.

"We have teams here whose job it is to disrupt crime by targeting those in the community who are intent in causing us harm. But we're looking at behaviours that our community can put into place to prevent them from becoming a victim of crime in the first place."

The '9pm routine' involves checking in on three effective crime prevention habits at night including: removing valuables from your vehicle, locking your car and house, and securing keys in a spot out of plain sight.

Supt Sullivan said while these measures may seem obvious, they're not always put in place which makes it easy for opportunistic thieves.

"What we find break-ins to homes are quite opportunistic crimes, and when the house is unlocked and the keys left in an easy place to find, it makes you more likely to become a victim of crime," he said.

"Once these three really easy behaviours become a habit we'll really make life tough for criminals in our area."

The district commander is urging residents to report any suspicious activity in their neighbourhood via Crime Stoppers.

"The reason for that is we want to know what you know, not who you are," Supt Sullivan said.

"Community engagement is the foundation on which local policing should be built. The community support that is required for us to police effectively is only possible through ongoing community engagement.

"It's really important this information comes to us anonymously, and then is fed onto those teams whose job it is to target those intent on causing crime in our community."